"The Fifth Estate" also stars Daniel Bruhl as Daniel Domscheit-Berg, an early WikiLeaks associate who eventually fell out with Assange.

Early filming has been taking place in Iceland. A photo released Wednesday by producers shows Cumberbatch and Bruhl on location in Reykjavik.

Laura Linney, Anthony Mackie and Dan Stevens are among the cast of the film, due for release in November.

Director Bill Condon ("The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn") said the movie would not offer "any final judgment" on WikiLeaks, which is both praised and reviled for publishing classified government material.

He said it would "explore the complexities and challenges of transparency in the information age."

The screenplay is by former "West Wing" writer Josh Singer.

Assange is currently living in Ecuador's London embassy in a bid to avoid extradition to Sweden to face sexual misconduct allegations.

(Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)